


How The Turns Table

by EchoSiriusRumme



Category: Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, POV James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Protective James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Tony Needs a Hug, Tony Stark Needs Sleep
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-08
Updated: 2020-08-08
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:54:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 667
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25789162
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EchoSiriusRumme/pseuds/EchoSiriusRumme
Summary: After a battle went wrong, Tony does his usual schtick of inventing new gear and weapons for his team.  Except it's been a week, and Rhodey has a genius to wrangle.
Relationships: James "Rhodey" Rhodes/Tony Stark
Comments: 10
Kudos: 87





	How The Turns Table

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Politzania](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Politzania/gifts).



> **Sleepy/Cozy prompts # 7 “I’ve been living off of coffee for two days I deserve to sleep!”**
> 
> I was excited to get this prompt on tumblr, and I'm even happier that I was able to actually get a little fic out in a decent time. ^-^ Hope you enjoy this [Poliz!](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Politzania/pseuds/Politzania/works)

Rhodey leaned against the doorframe of the lab, crossing his arms as he took in an unfortunately familiar sight. “Oh Tony,” he sighed.

His husband was buzzing around his workshop, a week into creating new tech for his teammates to keep them safer. His hands seemed to blur through the air, fiddling with one project before moving to the next confidently. Wide brown eyes flitted between the many monitors set up around his table, checking equations and results to guarantee a successful project. It was awe-inspiring and incredible to watch - but Rhodey couldn’t help but notice the negatives as well.

Tony’s lips were chapped and slightly bloodied from being bit in frustration so often. His entire body seemed to vibrate when he managed to stand still, hands shaking uncontrollably, no doubt due to the dozens of mugs scattered around. Not to mention the sleep deprivation, which was to blame for those warm eyes being ringed with red, dark puffy bags underneath.

Rhodey understood that Tony needed to do this, remembering how terrifying it had been to see Clint fall from that building, and how bloody and bruised Steve and Natasha had been after that battle too. Beneath all that snark was a huge heart that carried so much love for his team-turned-family, that seeing them hurt in any way was more than enough to provoke this type of response. It was something Tony had done since college, creating things to help his few friends and Rhodey with their schoolwork and such.

So he understood, but a week was long enough and from the look of the fabrication station, Rhodey knew that the Avengers would be well taken care of for a while now. Time to collect his wayward genius.

With long strides, Rhodey stepped up behind Tony and gently laid a hand on his shoulder. It took about a minute, but Tony finally registered the touch and turned to look up at him. “Huh? Oh hi sugarplum, I’ll be right up, let me just finish this…,” Tony trailed off, already turning back to the table.

Rhodey quickly used the hand still on his shoulder to pull Tony up to his feet, holding him steady when the man swayed. “Whoa, that was weird. Guess I got up too quick,” Tony chuckled, obviously trying to brush it off.

Rhodey rolled his eyes, wrapping his arm around Tony’s waist and leading him towards the elevator. “Or maybe it’s because you haven’t eaten anything in days. _Or_ ,” Rhodey continued before Tony could protest, “it’s because your bloodstream is more coffee than anything else. I saw that pile of mugs you tried to hide behind your desk too.” He walked Tony into the elevator, waiting for the doors to close before letting him lean against the wall. Cupping Tony’s face, he brushed his thumbs against the dark bags under his eyes and sighed when Tony leaned into the touch. “I get it, you know I do. But running yourself to the bone isn’t going to help them when you’re unprepared for the next mission.”

Tony pushed himself off the wall to slump against Rhodey, who immediately took his weight without a problem. The elevator doors dinged open in the next second, and Rhodey hugged Tony close, whispering, “Here’s what will happen. You’re going to take a shower while I make you some food, which you’ll then eat with no complaints.”

He smiled at the grumble Tony made at that, an annoyed, “I’ve been living off of coffee for two days, I deserve to sleep!”

“That’s not what you said the last few times I tried to get you out of there,” Rhodey said, raising a hand to tug playfully on Tony’s hair. “ _And then_ you’re going to bed and sleeping for at least 12 hours.”

“And what about you?” _Tired,_ vulnerable brown eyes gazed up at him, and Rhodey’s heart clenched when he whispered, “Stay with me?”

Rhodey kissed those warm, chapped lips, brushing another kiss on Tony’s forehead, before answering, “Always.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, hope y'all enjoyed this bit of fluff! Comments are always appreciated!


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